With more than 30 years of experience riding Disneyland’s roller coasters, these three are always thrilling (and worth their notoriously long wait times).

Looking for Disneyland’s most thrilling, high-speed roller coasters? As someone who’s ridden every single attraction at both Disneyland Park and Disney California Adventure Park over the last three decades, I know exactly what you’re looking for. But, even more importantly, I know which Disneyland roller coasters are really worth waiting in line for.

So, if you love a thrilling roller coaster, trust me: These three Disneyland rides are well worth standing in long lines for (or, at the very least, using a Lightning Lane on!).

The Best Disneyland Roller Coasters

Before we get into the best roller coasters, it’s worth noting that, despite its two theme parks and long list of attractions, Disneyland actually doesn’t have very many roller coasters. The park is home to just a few thrill rides and even fewer “true” roller coasters.

At Disneyland, the following attractions are roller coasters:

Big Thunder Mountain

Goofy’s Sky School

Incredicoaster

Matterhorn

Space Mountain

If it’s thrill rides you’re looking for, you do have other options. Disneyland and California Adventure are both home to attractions that aren’t technically roller coasters, but they are fast, exciting, and totally thrilling, like:

Guardians of the Galaxy Mission: BREAKOUT!

Indiana Jones Adventure

Radiator Springs Racers

Star Tours The Adventures Continue

Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance

Tiana’s Bayou Adventure

But, since we’re only covering roller coasters here, I’m going to talk solely about traditional coasters (specifically the steel track kind!). So, below are the tried-and-true best roller coasters at Disneyland, according to an expert who’s ridden everything.

Space Mountain

Is there any Disney roller coaster that’s better than this classic? (Okay, I know there are newer Disney World options that top it but like I mentioned before, Disneyland is pretty limited!) Space Mountain is an iconic Disneyland ride, and for good reason. This roller coaster from the late 1970s still holds up today, and it’s one of the fastest, smoothest, and coolest options in the original Disney theme park.

Disneyland’s Space Mountain is faster than its Florida counterpart and always thrilling. Thanks to its high speed (just 32 miles per hour, but it sure feels faster!) and the totally dark atmosphere, you never quite know what’s coming next as you climb increasingly higher, fly down hills, and veer into banked turns.

Even though I’ve ridden Space Mountain hundreds of times, it’s still thrilling all these years later. I attribute that to the fact that every ride is just slightly different. Little details, like your car’s weight distribution and just how dark it feels inside or if you’re getting awesome special effects, like the Hyperspace Mountain overlay for Season of the Force also change its vibe completely, making it well worth its nearly-3-minute ride when the line is long.

Incredicoaster

If you’re someone who loves classic amusement park roller coasters, you’ve got to ride the Incredicoaster. An opening day attraction at California Adventure that was originally inspired by the wood roller coasters of the 19th century, this steel launch-style coaster rockets riders from 0 to 55 miles per hour in 4 seconds flat. Plus, it’s serious about thrills: This is Disneyland’s only roller coaster with an inversion, and it’s the longest one across both parks at 6,072 feet of track (it’s also the third-longest coaster in the U.S.).

Although it underwent a retheming in 2018 and transformed from a basic coaster into one with a story inspired by The Incredibles, the Incredicoaster remains just as thrilling. That sole inversion is still present, and so too are both of the steep drops. It’s a coaster that’s sure to make your stomach drop – but the views from the top of each hill are pretty impressive!

Plus, with the addition of The Incredibles-inspired story, there are now cool special effects that accompany guests into the tunnels, which are unlike any basic roller coaster. It’s now so much more than a classic steel coaster, and it feels much truer to Disney with the addition of Jack-Jack’s escape, Dash’s super speed launch, and a cohesive storyline.

Big Thunder Mountain Railroad

Big Thunder Mountain Railroad is another Disneyland classic from the late 1970s. Although this attraction was originally designed for Disney World’s Magic Kingdom first, the Disneyland version made history by being the first iteration to open – and nearly 50 years later, it’s still drawing long lines.

That’s because, like Space Mountain, Big Thunder is one impressively smooth thrill ride. It’s one of the best roller coasters at Disneyland thanks to its speed, its thrilling ups, downs, and twists, and its standout theming. The ride, which replaced Mine Train Through Nature’s Wonderland, kept a few little nods to the long-gone original attraction, and I find it incredibly fun to whizz into the colorful Rainbow Caverns and past the town of Rainbow Ridge.

And, let’s be honest: Who doesn’t love speeding past Billy the Goat? (Speaking of Billy, according to some accounts he is technically a bighorn sheep and not a goat… though I’m firmly on team goat!)

Plus, if you’re a roller coaster enthusiast, Big Thunder Mountain Railroad is always a good time, which is why it’s one of the best at Disneyland. It’s fast but not too fast for younger riders, and there are enough twists, turns, hills, and moments of suspense to keep it exciting every single time you ride even if it’s many, many times.